A Chill Wind Blows... From Beer-Bellies

Young women embarrassed by their bulging beer bellies stole nearly 1,000 copies of the Framingham State College newspaper to cover up the front-page exposure.

Now administrators and editors want the fat-concerned ladies to pay.

“This is the most stupid reason the paper has been stolen,” said English professor Desmond McCarthy, faculty adviser to The Gatepost.

The April 27 edition of the school paper features seven bare-bellied women in tank tops and low-rise shorts standing on the bleachers during a women’s lacrosse game.

...

All the goodwill ended when some of the women told campus officials they looked too fat, so they trimmed down the stacks of papers.

One student who admitted to the hoarding returned about 130 copies, McCarthy said.

McCarthy and Megan Turner, The Gatepost’s editor-in-chief, said the students responsible for stealing the paper should be required to pay for reprints. Turner said printing 500 copies can cost about $630.

As someone who's both vain and very insecure about my appearance, I can sympathize.

The funny thing is, only one girl really has a beer belly -- and a smallish one -- and maybe one or two other girls show any noticable fat at all. Not really an embarrassing amount of fat. Just a bit of fun-stuff.